Isaiah 60:1 says, Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. This chapter is a part of the covenant of God with the people of Israel, or even with all who will come to Him in repentance by faith. This includes the church today, which is made up of all born again believers. Isaiah called on the people to arise and shine, not because of their goodness but because God had redeemed them by His mercy. They weren’t to shine the light on themselves but were to shine by the Light of God. We should never attempt to make ourselves the object of importance in our relationship with God, but we should always let the Light of God shine through us and on Him.
Verse two adds, For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. Isaiah said that the world was filled with spiritual darkness, but that God was going to arise upon them, and His glory would be seen, or shine, through them. This was done when Jesus Christ came to die for our sins and be the Light of the world. We as followers of Christ are not the Light of the world, but in the darkness of the world, we are to shine the Light to God, Jesus Christ, on the sinful world. We need to always reflect His Light to the world.
Verse three continues, And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. This Light would not be limited to the Jews but would shine on the Gentiles as well. Since the Jews believed that anyone who was not a Jew was a Gentile, this means that God’s light was to shine on all the world. God never limited His saving grace to the Jews, and He doesn’t limit it to certain groups of people today. We as Christians should never believe that we are superior to anyone else because God loves us more than other groups of people. Jesus Christ died for the sins of our enemies just as surely as He died for our friends and us.
Verse four states, Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side. Isaiah said the people of Israel needed to lift up their eyes and see what was happening. I believe that the people of Israel had been feeling downcast, but Isaiah said God now expected them to look up in faith and see the great numbers of people who were coming to put their faith in Him. Men and women, boys and girls, were coming from afar off to put their faith in and worship God. We as Christians need to lift our eyes up in faith and see the fields white with harvest today and spread the gospel to the lost everywhere.
Verse five adds, Then thou shalt see, and flow together, and thine heart shall fear, and be enlarged; because the abundance of the sea shall be converted unto thee, the forces of the Gentiles shall come unto thee. Isaiah said when they began to look around in faith, that the Jews would see great multitudes of Gentiles coming to God, and that their hearts would be enlarged because of this. As Christians, our hearts should be enlarged with love for those whom God has shined His Light on and who have come to live in that Light. We should never be upset because we don’t believe that some people deserve to be saved are saved, because we ourselves don’t deserve to be saved either. Our salvation should shine the light on God’s grace.
Verse six continues, The multitude of camels shall cover thee, the dromedaries of Midian and Ephah; all they from Sheba shall come: they shall bring gold and incense; and they shall shew forth the praises of the Lord. Isaiah said that people were coming from afar with camels and dromedaries bearing gifts to God. Even if they cannot bring valuable worldly gifts to God, anyone who becomes a part of God’s family by faith enriches the kingdom of God. All who come are called for a purpose after they come, and when they fulfill that purpose, the whole body of Christ is enriched.
Verse seven says, All the flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto thee, the rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto thee: they shall come up with acceptance on mine altar, and I will glorify the house of my glory. Isaiah continued speaking about the Gentiles coming from afar, saying they would bring gifts that would be acceptable to God on His altar. The Jews had very strict laws about what was an acceptable offering, and in Jesus’s day, they were even making money from selling what they proclaimed to be acceptable offerings. We should always bring our tithes and offerings to God and not be concerned with what other Christians give or don’t give. The only acceptable gift that we must first give to God is our life by accepting His gift of salvation. Since God gives us the right of freewill and the ability to say no to His gift of salvation, this is the only thing that He does not own. So, in order for us to enjoy the gift of salvation, we must give our life to God. He will never force us to become a part of His kingdom.
Verse eight adds, Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as the doves to their windows? I believe this was a rhetorical question, or maybe one that the Jews might be asking, since God knew who they were. Gentiles were flocking or flying to put their faith in God. It would be nice if people were flocking to the church today, but that is not the case. Still, we need to reach out to all people with the gospel and gladly accept those who respond.
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